Forbes Earnings Preview: DuPont

Analysts foresee DuPont (DD) announcing decreased profits on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, when it reports its fourth quarter earnings. Despite this, they are generally optimistic about the stock.

What to Expect:

Analysts are expecting DuPont to come in with earnings of 33 cents per share, 34% less than a year ago when it reported earnings of 50 cents per share.

Despite not changing over the past month, the consensus estimate is down from three months ago when it was 51 cents. For the fiscal year, analysts are expecting earnings of $3.92 per share.

Revenue is projected to be 15.2% above the year-earlier total of $7.4 billion at $8.53 billion for the quarter. For the year, revenue is projected to come in at $38.16 billion.

Trends to Watch For:

The company has seen double-digit year-over-year revenue growth for the past four quarters. Over that period, revenue has grown by an average of 19.6%. The biggest boost came in the most recent quarter when revenue increased 32% year-over-year.

The company's profit has been growing for the past three quarters. The 23.2% year-over-year growth in net income in the most recent quarter came after the 5.1% profit growth in the second quarter and the 26.7% rise in the first quarter.

Analyst Ratings:

The majority of analysts (71.4%) rate DuPont as a buy. This compares favorably to the analyst ratings of its nearest 10 competitors, which average 64.2% buys. Analysts have grown increasingly optimistic about the stock in the last three months.

Competitors:

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is involved with science and innovation across a range of disciplines, including agriculture and industrial biotechnology, chemistry, biology, materials science, and manufacturing. One of DuPont's main competitors in the chemicals industry is Monsanto (MON). Other competitors in the materials sector include: Dow Chemical Company (DOW), FMC (FMC), and PPG Industries (PPG).